water down

water down (third-person singular simple present waters down, present participle watering down, simple past and past participle watered down)

1. To dilute; to add water to.

   You need to water down the lemonade a bit more to make it less sweet, dear.

2. (idiomatic) To make weaker.
3. (idiomatic) To simplify or oversimplify; to make easier; to make less difficult.

   If you plan to teach this material to children, you may need to water it down.

4. (idiomatic) To make less restrictive; to make more lenient.

• watered-down

• tone down